Summary Of Samuel Hearne's Massacre Of The Esquimaux '
Eel Simile In
Samuel Hearne 's Massacre of the Esquimaux
ENGL 354
Written by: Kyle Huntley
Instructor: Ceilidh Hart
Early settlers of Canada were as much working for the entertainment of the British people as they were when attempting tojustify their expeditions to their investors. Popular opinion was important if an explorer was to be recognized and financially supported by one of the many businesses that stuck their hands into Canada. To achieve this the explorers kept detailed, and often highly exaggerated, journals. We read these now in the form of letters home, physical journal entries, fabricated stories by writers employed to puff the reputation of a particular explorer, …show more content…
The scene painted for us is that of a warrior thrusting a spear into a seemingly innocent person, innocent in the sense that at this time they play the pray and not the predator, who is helpless against their attacker. The choice of the eel as the comparative creature is similar to the common allusion to fish when referring to Jesus. In John 19:34 it states, “But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water” (King James Version, 1611). It can be assumed that any reader of this journal would know that when the girl was stabbed with the spear that blood would come out of her. The comparison of the eel references Jesus ' similar experience on the cross. Hearne in a previous statement references that non of the Esquimaux try to swim across the river and therefor “...they all fell a sacrifice to Indian barbarity!” (1771). The sacrifice being a key feature of Jesus on the cross leads me to see this as a Gothic infused allusion to his beliefs. There appears to be two sides to this imagery, and how the readers in Britain would view Hearne 's character. Hearne 's viewing of the girls demise in such a similar fashion could be perceived as a reenactment of Christs sacrifice. This would make him stand out as a blessed man who had God behind him. He alone was able to plead for her life and attempt to save her against the barbaric Indians but in the end was helpless. A righteous stance that would ring well in the ears of a heavily Catholic nation during a time when the Church of England and the Catholic church was vieing for supremacy. Similarly the fact that Hearne 's stance on the event is that of barbarism and inhuman design, in which he wants no part of, may be another
Samuel Hearne 's Massacre of the Esquimaux
ENGL 354
Written by: Kyle Huntley
Instructor: Ceilidh Hart
Early settlers of Canada were as much working for the entertainment of the British people as they were when attempting tojustify their expeditions to their investors. Popular opinion was important if an explorer was to be recognized and financially supported by one of the many businesses that stuck their hands into Canada. To achieve this the explorers kept detailed, and often highly exaggerated, journals. We read these now in the form of letters home, physical journal entries, fabricated stories by writers employed to puff the reputation of a particular explorer, …show more content…
The scene painted for us is that of a warrior thrusting a spear into a seemingly innocent person, innocent in the sense that at this time they play the pray and not the predator, who is helpless against their attacker. The choice of the eel as the comparative creature is similar to the common allusion to fish when referring to Jesus. In John 19:34 it states, “But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water” (King James Version, 1611). It can be assumed that any reader of this journal would know that when the girl was stabbed with the spear that blood would come out of her. The comparison of the eel references Jesus ' similar experience on the cross. Hearne in a previous statement references that non of the Esquimaux try to swim across the river and therefor “...they all fell a sacrifice to Indian barbarity!” (1771). The sacrifice being a key feature of Jesus on the cross leads me to see this as a Gothic infused allusion to his beliefs. There appears to be two sides to this imagery, and how the readers in Britain would view Hearne 's character. Hearne 's viewing of the girls demise in such a similar fashion could be perceived as a reenactment of Christs sacrifice. This would make him stand out as a blessed man who had God behind him. He alone was able to plead for her life and attempt to save her against the barbaric Indians but in the end was helpless. A righteous stance that would ring well in the ears of a heavily Catholic nation during a time when the Church of England and the Catholic church was vieing for supremacy. Similarly the fact that Hearne 's stance on the event is that of barbarism and inhuman design, in which he wants no part of, may be another